Distraction and Devotion (2)

Introduction

I’d like to address today what I believe is perhaps the greatest threat to your Christian walk. I believe this issue is what leaves many Christians who were once excited about their faith - about sharing their faith, to become indifferent to it. I believe this issue is what has taken many Christians from feeling as though they were drinking from living water to feeling empty and dry and bland.

You may think i am talking about suffering, or difficulty, or trials, but I’m not. In fact, I would argue that suffering, when rightly responded to, is actually one of the greatest tools to galvanize your faith and to chisel you into the image of Christ.

No, I believe one of the greatest threats to you faith is distraction.

It is rare that when our faith is challenged we would fade from Christ, and likely when our faith is left unchallenged.

“you will find that anything or nothing is sufficient to attract his wandering attention. You no longer need a good book, which he really likes, to keep him from his prayers or his work or his sleep; a column of advertisements in yesterday’s paper will do. You can make him waste his time not only in conversation he enjoys with people whom he likes, but in conversations with those he cares nothing about on subjects that bore him. You can make him do nothing at all for long periods. You can keep him up late at night, not roistering, but staring at a dead fire in a cold room. All the healthy and outgoing activities which we want him to avoid can be inhibited and nothing given in return, so that at last he may say, as one of my own patients said on his arrival down here, “I now see that I spent most of my life in doing neither what I ought nor what I liked”.” - C S Lewis, The Screwtape Letters

So if you feel like your faith is faded, your soul is dry, or your walk is luke-warm, stay tuned — this one’s for you.

Luke 10:38–42 (ESV)

38 Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house.

We don’t know where Jesus was on his way to, but Luke mentions that Jesus enters a village and meets with a woman named, Martha and her sister, Mary, who we know are the sisters of Lazarus.

We do know Lazarus and his sisters live in the village of Bethany which is about two miles from Jerusalem

Because later in Luke’s gospel Jesus is found a distance from Jerusalem, it would seem that Luke is not recording this event chronologically.

The Village of Bethany was in a region known for it’s hospitality which would make sense as to Martha’s invitation.

39 And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. 40 But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.”

What Mary is doing is reminiscent of what is described in the Mishnah:

“Let your house be a meeting house for the Sages and sit amidst the dust of their feet and drink in their words with thirst.”

m. ‘Abot 1:4:

Martha - type A, Mary - type B

Martha - task-oriented, Mary - people oriented

They both:

Love Jesus

are disciples / followers of Jesus

want to honor Jesus

Mary - Martha

characterized by doing for - characterized by being with

focused on serving Jesus - focused on learning from Jesus

distracted disciple - devoted disciple

performance-based Christianity - person-based Christianity

I don’t really fault Martha, though. I would probably feel the same way.

41 But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, 42 but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

The world generally values Marthas more than Marys but Jesus points out that Mary is doing something more valuable than Martha

Jesus is not saying that Mary is doing more things than Martha; he is not saying that he likes Mary or her work better, just that she has chosen the better share.

Based on this passage,

Look at two myths:

Offer three foundational truths:

Give one call to action.

I don’t like this passage - means I need to change some things.

Martha was busy which made her anxious and troubled.

does this ring true for you?

wake in the night with a to-do list?

After all you get done, you can’t stop thinking of all that’s left undone.

we tend to be busy because we feel RESPONSIBLE

or because we believer it will be MEANINGFUL

But neither of those things automatically make us FAITHFULL

Not original to me:

Myth 1: Religious busyness is the same as spiritual faithfulness

How can you tell if someone is godly? They go to church. . . .(certainly not the only or even the most important indicator) . However, it does not follow that everyone who goes to church is godly.

There is no greater threat to our devotion to Christ than our service for Christ.

Oswald Chambers

While it is true that Jesus said, “By their fruits you shall know them,

However, it is the quality of our fruit not the quantity that God is interested in.

The reality is you could serve in every ministry of this church. . . you could even serve outside this church. . .and still be spiritually empty.

Matthew 7:21–23 ESV

21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

It is possible to do things FOR Jesus and not do them WITH Jesus.

It is possible to serve out of religion and not from relationship.

The first is serving toward a status, the second is serving from a status.

The evidence of the fruitful Christian life is not simply doing a lot of things for Jesus or in Jesus’ name, it is each one of you experiencing the vibrant, life-giving, transforming, powerful work of God in your life that only a real relationship with Jesus can bring.

This is why we want to have a simple church

“Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.”

I see two correlations in Martha’s question to Jesus.

The less time you spend with Jesus through His Word and prayer, the more likely you will be to question His character.

ILLUST - similar to a marriage - or any relationship

Genesis 3 - “Did God really say. . .”

2. The less you are focused on Christ, the more you are open to comparison.

Mary was not worried about what Martha was doing - she was enamored with Jesus.

low satisfaction = high comparison

These correlations are predicated on a myth Martha believed:

Myth 2: Jesus cares more about you as you do more for Him.

If you believe that religious busyness = spiritual faithfulness then you will likely believe that doing more for Jesus causes Jesus to love you more.

Martha assumed that Jesus was pleased with her busyness and would be displeased with Mary’s lack of work.

Reality is there is nothing you can do to make Jesus love you more (or less), because He love you before you did anything for Him.

Romans 5:8 (ESV)

8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Matthew 11:28 (ESV)

28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Truth 1: Jesus wants you to be with him.

(gospel)

Jesus was on his way to …(we don’t even know and that is the point)… and stops to be with his friends. Even though he had much to do, he doesn’t expect to be served but to serve them.

If anyone would be busy, one would think it would be the Son of God who had come to earth to spend what would be a flash in light of eternity so that he could accomplish salvation for all who would believe, and Jesus sees it a priority to spend time eating, talking, and teaching his friends.

Jesus did not come to demand things from you, he came to bless you (not saying this in a prosperity gospel sort of way)

41 But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things,

Martha, Martha is a show of care.

The push to be with Jesus is not out of a religious “have to” but from a sincere “get to”

Remembering Christianity is not an add-on to life. It is life (or should be).

No one ever lost out by excessive devotion to Christ.

Harry A. Ironside - pastor of Moody Memorial Church in Chicago

Truth 2: Distractions can damage your discipleship.

How good is you marriage relationship if you are on your phone all throughout date night?

IILUST - In 2011, Reading PA made national news when Cathy Cruz Marrero, aka “The Fountain Lady,” fell into the fountain in the Berkshire Mall after being distracted while texting and walking. Cruz Marrero, who works at the mall, was carrying items she had purchased in one hand and texting on her phone while walking through the mall. As she neared (JC Penney?) she failed to look up from her phone and fell right into the fountain. She was unhurt but very wet.

- believes mall security should have done more (blames someone else)

- sued mall for posting video (didn’t want anyone to know)

- turns out she had made over $5000 purchases on a stolen credit card . . . From a coworker . . . At the mall (issues go deeper)

before we laugh too hard, we should perhaps ask if heaven had surveillance footage of us would it find something similar?

We become distracted by so much of what the world offers and neglect our walk with Christ.

It causes problems and sometimes we even fall.

Then we blame everything or everyone else.

40 But Martha was distracted with much serving.

Distraction destroys devotion which damages discipleship.

Distractions are the arch-enemy of devotion.

The subtle danger of distractions is that, like the word, they can start out looking like discipleship.

Distractions are things that cause you to look somewhere other than in the face of the one you love.

Mary was distracted by serving.

What are you distracted by?

What takes the top todo?

The tyranny of the urgent often pushes out the important.

Distractions are not always sinful or even bad?

Being distracted, even by good things, is still a dangerous thing.

ILLUST - Couples who don’t spend time together - busy with work, kids, etc. - distracted by even the “good things” of life still end up years later growing apart and claiming they don’t really know their spouse. Distraction destroys devotion to your spouse.

Among the enemies to devotion none is so harmful as distractions. Whatever excites the curiosity, scatters the thoughts, disquiets the heart, absorbs the interests or shifts our life focus from the kingdom of God within us to the world around us—that is a distraction; and the world is full of them. Our science-based civilization has given us many benefits but it has multiplied our distractions and so taken away far more than it has given.…

What distracts you from prioritizing time with Jesus?

The remedy for distractions is the same now as it was in earlier and simpler times, viz., prayer, meditation and the cultivation of the inner life. The psalmist said “Be still, and know,” and Christ told us to enter into our closet, shut the door and pray unto the Father. It still works.…

Distractions must be conquered or they will conquer us.

A. W. Tozer

Truth 3: Being with Jesus is more important than doing things for Jesus.

(or even just doing things in general!)

Don’t sacrifice one for the other

Don’t think one replaces the other

This is why you exist - to be with God

Being with Jesus is more important because being with Jesus what you made for.

The Westminster Shorter Catechism (Question 1)

What is the chief end of man?

Man’ s chief end is to glorify God, (1 Cor. 10:31, Rom. 11:36) and to enjoy him for ever. (Ps. 73:25–28)

Even after doing things for Jesus ends, being WITH Jesus is just getting started.

Being with Jesus is the end goal!

At the end of the day - at the end of time - that is all there will be - HE is all there will be.

The meals will be done. . .

You cannot substitute being at the feet of Jesus for the hands of Jesus

because:

Being at the feet of Jesus enables you to be the hands of Jesus.

“Service is the overflow of super-abounding devotion.”

— Oswald Chambers—

How much time do you spend with Jesus?

Is spending time with Jesus a task or a treasure?

(Put the name of your closest friend in your mind)

If you spent the same amount of time with __________ weekly as you do with Jesus, would you still be friends?

Action: Make time to be with Jesus!

NOT FIND time to know Jesus.

How many of you have expendable time and don’t know what to do with it?

Jesus didn’t defend Mary by telling Martha that Mary was unable to help - that she wasn’t able to set the table, cut vegetables, etc.

Jesus said Mary CHOSE the good portion.

The reality is — You will need to choose to spend time with Jesus.

NOT make time know ABOUT.

Knowing about someone is different than knowing someone.

WHEN will you spend time with Jesus?

HOW will you get to know him?

Couple of suggestions to move from distraction to devotion:

Commit to a rhythm

Word, Prayer, Solitude

Make time

If you wait to find the time there never will be time

times may change with seasons of life

Find space

No distractions

“Susanna Wesley, known as the Mother of Methodism, maintained a rigorous and disciplined prayer life, committing two to three hours daily to prayer and scripture study despite raising nineteen children and managing a large household. To create sacred space for communion with God amidst constant domestic demands, she famously used her apron as a visual signal; when she pulled it over her head, her children knew she was in prayer and must not be disturbed unless there was an absolute emergency.”

*Silent prayer* Be with Jesus